Yesterday was M.’s 9th birthday, her first since her father died. I tried my best to make it a good day for her, and I think it was. We got through the whole day without her being sad at all, which is good. I, of course, kept thinking about what he was missing, and how […]

Life changes fast. Life changes in an instant. You sit down to dinner and life as you know it ends. The Year of Magical Thinking has been on my reading list since it first came out at the end of 2005, and I just hadn’t gotten around to reading it. In looking for books […]

As with most of us, I love the idea of reusing and recycling things that could otherwise just be useless. Pallets have been hugely popular over the years for the sheer variety of things you can do with them, either as a whole or by taking them apart. Reclaimed wood, especially barn wood, is just […]

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Book Review: The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey

I had heard of Dave Ramsey plenty of times, and I think I had even taken The Total Money Makeover out of the library before but didn’t read it. I wish I had. I recently started listening to his radio show as a podcast while I’m at work, and actually heard what his plan is. As a result, I took the book out of the library again, but this time read it cover to cover.

I highly recommend this book to everyone. Not just people in debt, although plenty of people are these days, but everyone. It gives a simple plan for managing your finances that anyone can, and I think should, be following. His seven “baby steps” are straight-forward and his reasoning behind them is clear.

He does say that before you can follow his plan you need to get current on your monthly bills, which for many people is part of the problem, but he has some suggestions for that too. From selling things on eBay, having a garage sale, taking on a second job, finding online work — there are many ways to earn more money to get current, and as you reduce your debt that becomes easier because you’re not paying so many companies.

Even if you think your finances are in pretty good shape, it’s still worth reading because Ramsey has a different take on some of the “wisdom” we’ve all been told, things like “you need a credit card to have credit so you can buy a house.”

I’ll say one thing about my own personal finances: After reading his book and listening to his show, this is the first time EVER that I’ve felt confident about my financial plan, which in the past has been less of a plan and more of a jumble of passing thoughts.

The book is easy to follow, has a lot of common sense, and I, for one, am glad I finally read it.